Southaven, MS Overall Crime Down

Crime is down in Southaven, MS, and community residents helped in the effort. The Desoto Times-Tribune reports that community involvement was a big factor in the reduction of crime for 2010 despite the recessed economy. “Proactive citizens, I think, contribute directly to the numbers being down in the number of crimes and reports filed.” said Southaven Police Chief Tom Long. In fact, calls and services placed with the Southaven Police Department were up from 2009 by over 10,000 with 41,534 placed in 2010. Chief Long explains this increase has helped in the big reduction of theft crimes, with shoplifting, non-felony larceny and grand larceny all seeing significant decreases in 2010. “People are calling us about a lot more things and reporting more suspicious activity,” Long said.

Compared to the rest of the nation, Southaven stacked up pretty well, unlike neighboring Memphis, TN. The violent crime index is much lower in Southaven than elsewhere at only 1.08 (violent crimes per 1000 residents), compared to 4.29 nationally and a whopping 18.07 in Memphis. Southaven’s property crimes are still slightly higher than the national average at 36.51 (property crimes per 1000 residents) compared to the national index of 30.36 – but much better than Memphis’ 70.76 property crime rate.

We applaud the efforts of both the Southaven, MS residents and the Southaven Police Department for making the community a safer place to live in 2010, and it is our sincere hope that this trend will continue in the future. Unfortunately, there are still many cases where good people get caught in very difficult situations that result in being arrested from serious mistakes or very poor judgment, and innocent people being arrested mistakenly for crimes they did not commit. If you or someone you love has been involved in a crime, it is important for you to contact a qualified and experienced Mississippi Criminal Defense attorney. It is important to get help to protect your rights.